Three players who finish in the top ten and ties and who are not already exempt will secure their place in the field at Royal Portrush from 18-21 July.

Only six of the players in action at Randpark Golf Club are currently assured of a spot in the final major of the year, including former Open champions Ernie Els and Louis Oosthuizen, with Brandon Stone and Shaun Norris the other home players to have qualified.

Oosthuizen stars on home soil this week

Australian Open runner-up Dimitrios Papadatos and four-time European Tour winner Matt Wallace complete the list of those already in The Open field, with the Englishman looking to finish his impressive year strongly.

"I've still got loads of energy," Wallace said. "I had a decent category at the end of the year but I had to finish inside the top 100 to keep my card. Now I'm standing here with a two-year exemption, a three-time winner this year and 44th in the world.

Wallace is the only three-time winner on the European Tour in 2018

"To say it's surreal is an understatement, but it's kind of what I worked for. I've got confidence in my game. I'm working hard and that's what I try to do. I'm just riding with the wave that I'm on. I feel like I can win every time I tee it up."

Wallace plays for the first two rounds alongside Oosthuizen and Chris Paisley, who returns as defending champion after claiming his European Tour title at the event in January.

"I'm very excited to try and defend it," Paisley said. "It's obviously difficult to go back-to-back in events but I don't see why I can't do it."

Watch the South African Open hosted by the City of Johannesburg throughout the week live on Sky Sports. Live coverage begins on Thursday from 10am on Sky Sports Golf and Sky Sports Main Event.